Closed [The Sanctuary] Ripples In The Pond After The Thrown Stone

[Kavala]

Timestamp: 65th of Fall, 514 AV


It had happened. Kavala hadn't wanted it to, not really, but then Adrien knew how she felt about it and yet it had happened anyhow. They should have been building a forge or at least been outside supervising the workers she’d hired to help with some of the more complex parts. Aweston had taken over though, giving Adrien and the Konti time. He’d sensed something was up and for that Kavala was glad. They had the four walls of the forge up, but it was time for the roof to go on and more importantly the details inside be finalized and completed. Adrien had two fireplaces to wall in and work benches to build as well as tool shelves. But first the roof, and workers were diligently slaving away at it. The help had come to do the higher up work. Kavala hadn't wanted the rhino on ladders; though she knew he could do the work. The inside details she was more concerned about... the design of the shop, the concealing of the magecrafting lab and stair, the outside area for shoeing horses, and many other things.

But as the Konti stood leaning against the barn, pensively, watching the roof go on and turned from it, her mind still busy with the combination of the thrill of the new bonding and the fact that she and her new bondmate needed to talk. Adrien wasn’t far, but she could tell he was giving her some space. They’d parted after the waterfall. And Kavala had wondered if she hadn’t moved to fast, and perhaps even made a mistake. Giving him pleasure had been her pleasure as well, but somewhere deep inside her she knew her reactions to his affections weren’t normal and there was a lot she was avoiding about it and about him.

They needed to talk. Kavala knew that acutely. So she pushed herself off the barn wall and then headed for the Commons. Once there, she lit a fire in the fireplace, got it to roaring against the cold downdraft that came from the enormous chimney, and sat down on the oversized couch. She curled her legs up under her, then shifted until she was sitting up, knees drawn up against her chest, and arms wrapped around them. She rested her chin on her knees and sighed.

If she was truthful with herself, she’d admit that she was thrilled. Because that’s really what it was. Bonding… making that connection… had been a lot like flying for the first time. Even giving him pleasure without giving him herself had been a joy. The truth also was Kavala felt sorry for Adrien. It would take her time, and the link to strengthen, before she’d trust herself with him and before she’d trust her heart with his. It wasn’t fair to him either. Adrien was a good man, the best of men, and he deserved someone that would give him her everything, not hide out and run like a coward. That’s what she’d done at the falls… bonded him, serviced him, and ran. What in the Ukalas was wrong with her? The Konti wanted to sob, but instead she ran her hand through her long tangled white hair in frustration and wondered if he bought her story about having to check on the new workers coming from the city and that she’d be back with him in a bit.

A bell. She’d been gone a bell. And after all that, through the bond, she could sense his patience and slight amusement, and marveled at his feelings. It would happen over and over again, she knew… the screwed up attempts to make him happy through physical satisfaction and the fleeing afterwards, because she didn’t know how to handle someone that would stay.

He didn’t want anything or anyone but her. He’d made that clear. But even as he’d explained that to her, she’d decided that maybe… just maybe… if she could please him enough and thoroughly, he’d forgive her fleeing and putting space between them because she didn’t know how I the world to have a normal relationship.

There were things she had to tell him though. The Cytali. Their enemies. The danger they were always in. She even wanted to tell him about the Dreamwalking and perhaps walk his chavi because she was curious about him and the lives he’d lead. He had just entered a life he had no idea existed. But she wanted to make sure he knew. And, truth be told, she wanted to touch him again. She could still taste him and her hands could still feel the smoothness of his skin under her hands. The Konti took a deep breath and tried to get her thoughts back on the right road.

Even now she could feel the Kelvic move through The Within. He was somewhere near his quarters, beyond the library. Even now she could feel his seeking mind and knew he was looking for her. She opened up, let the smells and sights and sounds of the commons flow through her and knew that he would know where she was then. She had nothing to hide and no reason now to avoid him. What was done was done. And no matter how conflicted she was about it, Kavala also accepted it.

It was just hard, very hard, accepting him accepting her.

And at that thought she waited. He’d find her snuggled up on the couch, pensive, dressed in a flowered skirt and tunic with low kidskin boots that had been kicked off and left at the foot of the couch. She looked tired, worried, and even through all that, she offered him a smile and scooted over slightly even though she didn’t need to… offering him a place on the couch beside her.

“Adrien.” She said softly, studying him as he approached. “You said we could talk later. It’s later. Can it be now?” She asked, knowing he’d have questions and that he’d seen glimpses of her thoughts during the bonding. Even now the glittering of her Cytali robe came to mind and she longed for the comfort and security of her Dreaming, the place she’d carved out of Nysel’s realm. He’d feel the longing, the need for security, and her longing to include him in all of it in a way he’d understand and find comfort.

[Adrien Dair]

Adrien walked the Within. His fingers dragging along the wall as he did so. His mind wandering over everything that happened just a bell ago. He knew that she was afraid. He knew that she was scared of things that he did not quite yet understand. He was a little hurt that she had not returned. But the feeling did not last long. He knew they would come together again. Share the same space they shared before and he could wait. He would wait for her as long as she needed. His mind wandered up to the workers who had come in to do the roof work. For some reason Kavala did not want him on the ladder. He didn't quite understand it but he shrugged. It was not like it mattered to him. When the building was finished he would be the one inside. Working on anything and everything that needed to be done. Shoes for the horses, weapons for the fighters, armor for the weak.

Armor. He thought back to what he said. Spilling his feelings to her of wanting to protect her. Wanting to be her armor, to be the one there to defend her when she couldn't defend herself. He still wanted to talk about what he had seen. He was curious to who they were and what they were doing. It was something the Rhino had never seen before and certainly not something he had seen in the Sanctuary since he had been here. But this place still seemed to hold many secrets that he did not know about. His eyes looked towards Kavala's room. Remembering her dragging them both down the hall and into the room.

He could feel her then. Somewhere near by but not sure where. He continued to walk, heading towards his own quarters as he let her emotions and thoughts run through him. She seemed upset that she had run from him and had not returned. Some thought about her pleasing him till he forgave her crossed through his mind from her. He turned from his quarters and began walking. He would check every room he had to until he found her. The Cytali, the people in the robes appered again. But he kept walking ignoring that image that he remembered from the bath. The images of the robes and even Kavala herself in one.

Adrien was determined to find her until he crossed her mind and in turn his. He saw her reaching out to touch him again. To feel the bareness of his skin against her hands. He had stopped in his tracks without even noticing. He smiled and remembered her touch. He wanted her to touch him just as much as she wanted to touch him. He imagined her hands pressed against his chest. Pushing him back against a wall and tracing her fingers along his muscles.

A short time after images filled his mind, the crackling of the fire and the couch she sat on. His journey continued into the commons. Letting the images of the hall, the feeling of the wall on his fingers and the sounds of his own breathing as he walked down them, flow through his mind.

When he entered the commons he looked right at her. The beautiful Konti sitting on the couch. She looked tired and worried about something. She scooted over on the couch to give him a place to sit beside her. He felt her eyes studying him as he slowly walked towards her. "We can talk when ever you want to, Kavala." he said. His eyes on hers, the feeling of warmth and comfort in them as he tried to show that he could handle anything she needed to say. He sat close to her, by her feet, on the couch. He did not touch her, did not reach out to take her hand or rest his upon her knee. He would wait to see what happened. He would wait to see what she did. Everything she was thinking about was on his mind. He smiling face in the her robe. Then they were in a realm he did not know. But she seemed safe inside of it, more comfortable then she did in the real world. His eyes studied her as he felt her thoughts. He felt the need of security and her longing for him to be there. To be with her in her comfort and safety.

He smiled at her. She could move as she pleased. Lay her feet across his lap or turn till she was resting on him. It did not matter to him, he just wanted her to feel secure. He wanted her to feel the thing he wanted most for her. He wanted her to be happy, wanted to be a source for her happiness. He stretched one of his legs out. The fabric of his pants clung to muscle beneath. His arms moved to rest behind his head. The muscles of his arms flexing and relaxing as they moved. His eyes did not leave her as he got himself more comfortable. Ready for the answers she was going to give him and ready to see what it was that she was trying to hid from him. He knew that it would take time for her to trust him. He felt it as she left him down in the falls and even when he entered the room. He knew she was fighting herself about it. Arguing with herself and causing herself stress. "Do not worry about me so much. About us rather. I understand you need time. I may not know all of your past, but I do know that it was not as easy as mine. I am willing to wait. Just know I will be by your side when you need me and even when you don't. I will be there when you need the comfort and safety that you can not find." he said. His smile warm she would be able to feel that he was telling the truth. That none of what he said was a lie.

[Kavala]

When he got settled, the Konti shifted so she released her arms that were clasped about her legs, turned them and gently snuggled into the curve of his body laying her head on his shoulder. She unbuttoned his work shirt and pulled it free of his pants so it was loose in order to touch the skin on his chest. It was later in the day and she was tired, just in from feeding and doing some of the chores she’d assigned herself that day. She reached back and pulled the blanket that lay draped over the couch around them, adding warmth because she’d been cold coming in from the outside and changing from her heavy fall coat into something that was more conducive to roaming The Within and getting some work done.

Her hand trailed across his bare chest, absently stroking him, even as she got comfortable. “In the old times when they wanted a young Kelvic to bond a child, they’d make them stay together day in and day out until it happened. Even the older Kelvics, the ones bought and sold for huge sums or created right in the lab by Marcus Kelvic himself were treated somewhat differently. They were exposed to people until they found one they longed for, and then once the bond was made, they were left with that person for days and days so the bond could get strong, solid, and be well formed. They instructed touching of all sorts, and basically just being together for long periods of time.” As Kavala spoke, she slipped a hand around his head to the nape of his neck where she began to gently scratch him with her nails, rubbing his scalp at the junction of his neck and head where the hair sprang up. It was an affectionate touch she often used to soothe Larik or Cadra when they were upset or needed calming. She knew Adrien wasn’t upset or in need of calming, but it was as if she herself needed it. There was something deeply disturbing about this bond, something that worried her but was beyond her reach or ability to understand.

The fire was burning down slightly, and Kavala frowned because she should have added more logs before she’d gotten so comfortable. Now she didn’t want to move and actually didn’t need to. Adrien was keeping her warm just by his presence.

How in the world was she going to start? The Konti kept gently rubbing his scalp at the base of his neck, lost in thought, letting her bond widen and letting him see the images run through her head. And she knew, truthfully, that it didn’t matter if she started at the beginning, the middle or the end, the important part was that she start.

“There is so much in the world you haven’t seen, Adrien. Not because of what you are but because you were born so brief a time ago. Here, in this place, you will see more than you might want too and be forced to grow before you time. You are just a bit older than my son, and there’s so much I want to protect him from and now you as well. But I cannot protect you if walk blindly into the world. And right now you are blind, vulnerable, and there are secrets between us I don’t want there to be.” She said, gently releasing her hand from the back of his neck, trailing it around to the hollow of his throat, and then stroking it across his stomach.

The Konti might have been guarded with her emotions, but she was generous with her touch, her affection, and even making sure he had pleasure. She’d already proven that when they’d bonded, but now he could tell she’d never reject his touch and withhold her own for it soothed her as much as it soothed him in the difficult things she needed to say.

“You follow Syna and she is a bright beautiful goddess. But there are others out there, as I know you are well aware of. We follow some of them here. Primarily among them is Rak’keli, for her healing, which should not surprise you. But… some of this you see is a lie. It’s a camouflage for something deeper, something more grey that black and white. There is a god whose realm includes dreams and nightmares. His name is Nysel and hes called The Dream Lord. Those that follow him are Dreamwalkers because we can do things other people cannot without great effort.” She paused then, letting him soak up what she was saying, and then traced the line of light fur sprinkling his beltline up to the small amount on his chest. She stroked the line a few moments, lost in thought, not sure how to precede.

“Every person alive has a record of their life written in a silver cord-like thing called a Chavi that stretches back into history. Not only this life was written there, but other lives as well. Dreamwalkers, those marked by Nysel, can touch the chavi, read it, walk backwards on it and view what was there. We can take others with us. We can step sideways in our dreams from the material place, this place, to the Chavena where all the chavi dwell.” Kavala said, then traced a finger line around his belly button.

“Picture your navel as the realm of the Gods, the Ukalas. The Ukalas is their natural home and where they all live. It is a great place of power and the core of the whole of the world. Around that is the material… but it doesn’t touch the Ukalas.” Kavala traced another ring around his belly button, further out, some distance from his actual navel. "Between them is the Chavena. It’s where us mortals keep our immortality and store our memories while we are on the material. “ Kavala said, tracing fine lines, hundreds of them, linking his navel to the invisible circle further out around it.

“The Chavi are everywhere. You wade through them on the Chavena. But to find the right one you need a key, a beckon like a lighthouse to guide you to it. Dreamwalkers always know where their own chavi is, and can often trace back their friends from the points where other chavi touched their owns … like right now. Our Chavi are touching because we are touching. I can always find you there now Adrien, not just because of our Kelvic bond, but because our Chavi has touched.” The Konti said, rubbing at the invisible drawing she was doing on his stomach and dipping her hands beneath his beltline, stroking his firm stomach. The tips of her fingers brushed him intimately and were gone as she made him feel welcome to be there beside him with her touch.

Even as they spoke, just being together, he could feel the bonds strengthening. When she spoke of the Chavi, he could almost see the silver lines of spiral memories trailing around him even though he’d never been to the Chavena and hadn’t heard of such things before. Her memories were flowing through the bond, feeding him images quietly, augmented by her very strong Konti gift.

She was speaking of power, true power, the kind that existed in the universe and that was older than time. There was no magic here, no manipulated djed or strung out energy from something as shallow as a mere mortal creature. This was something designed and something that had been in place since the beginning of time.

And she had access to it.

“The followers of Nysel have a fortress here. We are an outpost, the first since the Valterrian, and we act within the cover of the clinic and boarding facility. I’m a known Geomancer, but also a mild tempered healer who has a quiet way with animals and Kelvics. No one suspects we are here, but we do have enemies. We are called The Cytali and we walk the Chavena in search of lost knowledge. Just like how we are building the forge and then the mageforge under it. We won’t magecraft with modern knowledge, Adrrien. We’ll magecraft using knowledge from the great wizards of before the Valterrian. We’ll perform rites not from the shadow wizards that survive on remnant magics here in the now. We’ll learn from the greatest of them and bring that knowledge forward. Once we start that work, it will make us even more of a target.” Kavala said, stretching out beside him and sliding her form closer. Her sleeveless tunic made most of her arms contact his skin to skin and he could feel her scales sliding along his flesh.

“Odds are Nysel will mark you too. He’ll want you to have what we have so that you are on equal footing with us. You should be ready. His tests will not be difficult, but they will take a clever mind to stand up too.” Kavala said softly, listening both with her mind and with her ears to his reactions.

She lifted her head, met his grey-green eyes and quietly asked him permission. “I want to walk your Chavi. I want to know who you were before and if we were anything to each other. You bonded fast to me for being as old as you are. It should have taken more time, gone slower, but you are so stubborn. There is something to it. I wish to know what that was. Will you come with me and let me Dreamwalk with you to see if we’ve traveled together before?” Kavala said softly, hesitantly, not knowing how he’d react duet o the fact she didn’t truthfully know him at all yet.

Desire was one thing. Desire with a Kelvic bond that had happened too fast for her to even catch a breath was heady. She wanted to know if there was a why to it, for her own sanity, and because she had started to feel like she was slipping and restless. The latter seemed empty critique to her though. She knew the rhino, even though they’d only just met. He was familiar to her in a way she didn’t understand and in a way she trusted wholeheartedly. It was more than his bullheaded insistence. It was far more than his core deep need to protect. They hadn’t been bonded long enough or deep enough for that yet… though the bond was growing stronger by the heartbeat. Something was off and she wanted to see what it was.

[Adrien Dair]

He shifted to make sure she was comfortable against him. The sudden pulling and messing with his clothes as he could feel her want to touch his skin. He did nothing to stip her. Wanting it just as much as she did, waiting for her to move. He closed his eyes as she petted his chest. The smooth touch of hers against his hardened chest. He could feel she was tired and thinking hard about something he could not quite grasp. He moved his arm wrapping it around her waist. He lifted her tunic slightly so his fingers could dance on the skin of her stomach. Moving his hand up and down then around in circles as they sat there together. Her touch was a pure sensation to him. Something he could just sit in as bells went by and not say a word. His hand slid up brushing just under her breast then back down. A slight tease in the most harmless way he could mean it. His hand would slid over her hip and along the small of her back before returning to her stomach.

His eyes open when she began to speak again. She spoke of Kelvics and the old way. Mentioning the creator again and spoke of strengthening the bond. Touching of all sorts and spending long periods of time together. He was fine with it. The idea practically sent a flare of acceptance and happiness through him and into her as they sat there. He did not say anything, just continuing to enjoy her touch. The scratching at the back of his neck cause him to close his eyes again as he enjoyed it.

He could feel her displeasure with the fire burning down and he snuggled closer to her under the blanket. His free hand running along her jaw as he kissed her forehead. He knew she had more to say and he would sit there to listen. The Kelvic story was just filler for what was soon to come. He whispered in her ear. "I can handle it. I am yours remember." He let his hand slid down her jaw, giving her a slight feeling of him cupping it like she did earlier. He smiled and said "I'm not going anywhere." He knew that she already knew that, she had accepted it. But he wanted to say it. To reassure her of the truth behind his words. He closed his eyes again to focus of the images crossing his mind as it did hers. Still enjoying the feeling of her touching him.

He awaited her words and her touch as his own hand explored a bit. A finger slipping onto her waist, just below the belt line and tracing from side to side. She spoke and he listened. He turned to look at her when she moved her hand from the back of his neck, he would wait for it to leave his throat and trail down his stomach before he spoke. "I know there is a lot I have not seen. I do not have the trouble past of a lot of Kelvics. But I am still strong. My will is unbroken. We will protect each other. No matter what will come we will be fine in one way or another. I am sure of this" he said only nodding his head. His hand had stopped on her hip. Pressing there firmly as a slight show of his physical strength. It was no surprise to anyone that knew what he was that he would be strong. But he knew, even at his young age, that not everything could be solved with only physical strength. He felt that he had a greater calling then just being a carpenter. He wanted more and now he had a piece of that more with her. She was everything he wanted. Smart, strong and beautiful. She cared more then she had to and that just drew him even closer to her. He nuzzled his side into her more. Kissing the top of her head as a sign to show her he was ready when she was.

She brought up the gods and then more. Chavi, Chavena and Dreamwalkers, he only understood what it meant because of her. But even then his grasp on it was little. His interested peaked at the thought of not knowing about the dreamwalkers. He wanted to know more. He followed her description watching her finger trace around his belly button. Taking it all in as she spoke. "My Chavi? Have you been there before?" he asked. Curious then as he felt their bond strengthening.

"Nysel" he said mimicking her as she continued to talk to him. This place was more then he thought it was. More then he ever could have imagined. "Cytali" he said again after her. She spoke of the forge and the plans they had. Knowledge from the ancient mages. He did not know about that but even then he was only excited and curious. No sense of fear or worry had crossed his mind as she spoke.

"You think he'll mark me to? How do I become ready? Why would he pick me?" he was curious. Though he knew people had often been marked by the gods they prayed to. He had not thought he would be marked.

It was then she spoke of his Chavi. She wanted to see if their was more to them, if they had walked together before to know if they were something to each other before. "In our past lives?" he asked. Putting it together now, everything that she had said or mentioned from their bonding earlier till now, it was filling his head and coming together like a puzzle he was solving with her help.

He slid his hand away from her waist and stood up. He turned and picked her up, scooping one arm under her knees and the other around her back. He was giving her answers. Not through words, but through his feelings and touch. He was ready and excited ready for it. For her to walk his Chavi with him. He carried her to her quarters. Only setting her on her own feet as they reached the door. He opened it up, taking her hand in his and walking inside. He walked over to her bed with her hand in his. He sat down and looked up at her with an almost child like smile. "What do we do?" he asked.

[Kavala]

Kavala shook her head, thoughtful, but also in denial. “I cannot say who he will mark and who he will not. I do know you won’t escape his notice being amongst our kind here in this place. While he doesn’t dictate to us what we should do and smother us, he is attentive and watchful of his followers.” Kavala said, enjoying the quiet intimacy between her and Adrien. She couldn’t help but look at him and think of others who had come before. He was stubborn but curious, not knowing everything he should for his apparent age. But the things he didn’t know also seemed to be obscure things he’d have no reason to know.

He was bold, slowly coming out of his shell around her, and making his wants and needs known. In that he was open, completely, whereas before she’d always had to guess and wait, and wonder if today was the day someone would have time for her or make room in their lives for her needs. Adrien seemed to think this was never a question because in the short time she’d been with him, he always had time, energy and knew what she needed.

The Konti knew she couldn’t possibly give enough back to him to make up for what that meant to her. And despite the fact that she was fighting it, Adrien – day after day – was coming to mean more and more. It wasn’t just the bond. He was special. In some people, being a Kelvic was a handicap. He seemed to have mastered it though so that it was less of a crutch and a heck of a lot more like a huge bonus.

She loved touching him and being touched by him. It was a great joy to her. And though she inherently feared deepening their relationship, that too was coming. They were both adults, lusty, and in good physical shape. It was a natural part of things, one she couldn’t put off for long. And the truth was, she didn’t. But it would be easier, less of a huge step off the deep end if she knew who he was and what he was in his past life.

As they spoke further, Kavala watched Adrien put two and two together. He seemed to have a clearer idea of what she meant after she spoke, even if the words were fantastical and slightly less than believable. Kavala wasn’t worried. The proof was in the way he looked and how he felt through the bond. He was calmer, focused, intent on helping and slightly determined.

The Konti smiled, leaned up, and kissed his forehead. She lost her smile when he got up, picked her up and snuggled her into his arms. Carrying her to her chambers, setting her down, and escorting her in was odd enough. But then asking her what now was something utterly and completely different. She wasn’t used to someone carrying her around, taking care of her, making her feel safe. They could have Dreamwalked on the couch, snuggled before the fire where they were. But for some reason he wanted here here, in her chambers, snuggled in her bed. That made Kavala smile.

She turned after he walked in and shut the door, fastening a deadbolt against being interrupted. Then she walked hand in hand with him to the bed, stripped her things off, and slide in under the thick layers of furs piled high on the enormous four poster. “Join me. All we need to do is sleep. Nysel will guide us through the rest.” The Konti said, tired despite the day.

If he did, she’d wrap herself around him, lay her head on his chest, and wait for him to fall sleep - quiet and still so he cold do so. If he did, she’d join him, her mark allowing her to slip in and out of sleep at will. Once his breath was regular, and his heartbeat relaxed, Kavala would drift off, slip sideways, and materialize herself in the Chavena, dragging Adrien with her.

He would find himself in a place unlike no other. Kavala floated beside him, materialized because she knew it would be easier for him that way. But she could have taken the form of any of her lives, or even a silvery ball of light. Instead she gave him something familiar to cling too as they stared out across a vast field of what could only be called glittering spirals of swirling light against a night-dark backdrop. He could see his own Chavi, flowing entwined with Kavalas, beside him. In the distance they branched off, touching other chavi, but ultimately going different directions. The colors were endless, breathtaking, and complex. There was a sound, low and beautiful, that filled the world in his awareness. And in that awareness he realized each chavi sung with a different song, a tune in the darkness, until the whole of them made a chorus of song that was indescribably beautiful.

Kavala reached out a translucent hand, her form seemingly filled with stars, and tugged at his awareness. “Come with me...“ She said, tugging him along his chavi, to the place his parted with Kavala,s and then onwards – no backwards – sliding along the pathway. Kavala occasionally dipped into the silvery strand, but didn’t seem satisfied.

They traveled for a long long time.

Then he saw it, the strand that had been united with his where they’d slipped sideways into the Chavi dragged by Kavala’s power. It was Kavala’s own chavi, remerging with his after having traveled off on its own some distance. Kavala paused here, recognizing herself in the Chavi and nodded to it. “That’s mine… with yours again. Here we will go in.”

And with that she took his hand again. He felt the sensation of dropping, of falling, and found himself looking out his own eyes – human eyes – at a girl who faced him off, anger pouring through her. She looked young, perhaps just on the cusp of being an adult.

“Something’s off with you, Geode. Something is different.” The girl said, tilting her head and accusing him quietly in a half whisper as if she thought they would be overheard. “Why won’t you tell me?” She said, backing him up as if to push him into the wall with the force of her will alone. He knew she was dangerous because he’d helped train her himself. He could still best her on the worst day because he’d been at the game far longer than she had been. But that didn’t mean he wanted too.

The new mark, the one he hated and never asked for, burned against his skin. It was ironic that it was placed high on this thigh, close to his groin, well hidden much to the amusement of the Goddess when she’d identified him as Ruv’na and had marked him to amuse herself. Already the mark was causing him pain, on the edge of being crippling, because he hadn’t hurt anyone that day. Vexation was a nasty gnosis, and one that just reinforced to him that what the Ruv’na did was absolutely vital. He hadn’t started the war, but he was more than willing to help end it, Bitch Goddesses be damned.

Geode could reach out, snatch the girl’s throat, and end her miserable life. The mark whispered to him to do so. But she was Crescent, his adoptive father’s daughter and family herself. The two had come together early and had been raised together with the same lessons and the same techniques. They had been trained in blades together, poisons, and even ranged weapons. They were as close as twins. He wasn’t Eclipse’s blood, so it was a given that Crescent and Geode were paired up and ultimately intended for each other.

Kavala looked down the line, studying Geode’s Chavi until she could see where her own parted. Not long from now, no… very soon she’d be taken by the Cytali never to return again. She wondered what that did to people like the man before her. She turned, caught his eye again and said…”You need to tell me, Geo.”

[Adrien Dair]

The idea of Nysel's guidance excited him. Though a patron god of the city of his birth he did not follow him, not yet. Though now he was sure he would. At some point they would cross paths he was sure of it. But even if they had not, if his fate was not intertwined with the hand of Nysel, if it made Kavala happy he would walk the path. Even if he was never accepted by the god of dreams, he would pray to him and offer him up praise all for her.

He looked at her and smiled as they walked hand in hand towards her bed."I know we probably could have slept on the couch. But I felt that here would be better. A place of comfort for the both of us." He watched her strip. The elegant curve to her body like artwork to his eyes. Then it was gone, hidden beneath the furs. Adrien stripped to after she asked him to join her. Pulling the shirt over his muscular form and then working to undo his pants. He slid under the furs and moved close to her.

His skin brushing against her as they met under the covers. She tangled her self with him and laid her head on his chest. His arm slid under her, wrapping around her back and his fingers traced up and down her side. A feeling of safety and relaxation overcoming him as he yawned. The feeling of her figure pressed against him brought him comfort. His finger brushing against her side, never following the same path. He pulled her as close to him as possible. Fully wrapping his arm around her. He closed his eyes and let the sleep overtake him.

He whispered her name one last time before he fell asleep. His chest raising and lowering steadily as he slept. He felt himself being pulled along into a different realm. His body was floating as he found himself in a different place. His eyes scanning all that was before him. He moved closer to Kavala. He looked at his own Chavi, slightly not believing that this was real as he looked at it. His was tangled with hers much like their bodies were. A unique sound calling out to his ears. Quiet but beautiful as he took in his surroundings. "This is unbelievable" were the only words he could muster as Kavala reached out her hand. He wove his hand with hers and let her lead him. The journey seeming to last longer then he thought it would. He noticed that they were following his Chavi and that hers had disappeared. He looked at her, assuming that this marked the time that they were separate. Before they had met at least before they had met again.

Then she spoke saying this is where they had met again. That they would go in here. He was not quite sure what she meant until she took his hand and they fell. Falling for what seemed like forever to him before he opened his eyes. He was in a place he did not recognize for a moment before it all rushed back to him.

Crescent stood in front of him, the girl he had helped train. The one he was to be paired with. He felt the cursed mark burn upon his leg. He looked into her eyes as she spoke. "Cause its none of your petching business" he said pushing past her. Trying to ignore the burning he felt, the nearly overwhelming feeling of busting someones skull open or slitting their throat. "Because there is nothing to tell." The man walked past her.

Geode looked around the room, it was small with a few books scattered around. They were in his apartment. He grabbed the dagger that was on the table in front of him. Squeezing it's handle in his hand as he turned back to face her. "I don't need to tell you anything! There is nothing to tell" he said. He knew that if he told her. That she would tell Eclipse, even the girl he had been raised with. Would go to her father to protect the Ruv'na. He was getting angrier just thinking about it. His eyes scanned hers as he chewed his tongue in thought. "What would you do if you were marked by a god? One you did not ask for... Did not want?"

He looked at her, studying her reaction. He moved to block the door just in case. She would not run, not from him. He would not let her, he would grab her by the hair and yank her back if he had to. The mark continued to whisper in his ear as he looked over her. He could drive the blade into her chest and watch the light drain from her eyes. Feel the sick satisfaction of killing her, the warmth of her blood on his hands.

He wanted it. He wanted to throw her on the ground and take her life from her. The mark wanted it and the Goddess. He squeezed the dagger handle tighter in his hand till his knuckles turned white. "Why are you here anyway?" he said. Turning away from her again. He walked across the room. Picking up the books that were scattered. Books about the Gods and tales of weapons that could kill them. He remembered what he was doing the night before. Studying and plotting. Trying to find a way to take down the Gods. He wanted to kill that petching witch of a Goddess more then anything now. He would do so for the glory of the Ruv'na even if it killed him. He stacked the books upon the nightstand by his bed and then sat on it. The furs disturbed from the night before. He turned the dagger over in his hand. Feeling the blade try to bite into his skin. He knew what it wanted. The blade thirsted for blood like he did. He wanted to watch the life drain from someones eyes.

[Kavala]

Kavala watched, not through her own eyes but through his, learning more of her history even as she watched Adrien’s unfold.

The girl that confronted Geo was strong, smart, and in her own way an heiress to an unspoken fortune in knowledge and a legacy that stretched back through time. And while she hadn’t been pampered, she’d been encouraged and emboldened, and that showed as she faced off against the man who was older, stronger, and bred of the same kind of thing the girl was.

She was undaunted as he pushed past her, following in his wake, knowing he’d either eventually cave and tell her or they’d come to blows. Both options were equally satisfying. The girl got off on a good fight and he well knew it. He’d taught her too. Fortune, after all, favored the bold who wrote it themselves and kept it out of the hands of the Gods. So it was not surprising she flanked him, cut in front of him, and hopped up on his desk in his quarters, leaning back and crossing her long booted legs. Crescent was beautiful and knew it, using it like a weapon when she could. It was something else he’d taught her and those lessons had been enjoyable.

“As to why I’m here anyhow…. well, I’m your future wife. I can come and go from your chambers as I please. No one will say a word about it. Betrothing does that to a person. And by the Void, half the fortress thinks I’m already warming your bed. My father’s wife…” Crescent couldn’t bring herself to call the new woman her mother. ”… practically goes into mourning whenever the servants tell her I’m bleeding. She keeps saying she wants grandchildren and that I’m old enough to marry now. I keep telling her you haven’t gotten bored with petching every pretty servant father hires yet. And only when he starts hiring ugly ones, then and only then you’ll start paying attention to me.” Crescent said, flipping her dark chestnut pony tail and rolling her bright blue eyes. Even though she was a trained killer, the girl was still so young in many ways. Geode frequently had to stifle the urge to turn the chit over his knee.

Though she had ignored his initial question, the scenario about the marking, she brought it back up now, now that she had his attention – even if it was a sneer and a murderous approach. His expression and mood only seemed to serve to fuel her amusement. It was as if she knew something he didn’t.

Crescent gave him a smile despite the aggression oozing off him and dug into her tight silk blouse and pulled something up that had been tucked between her breasts. She leaned forward and in a toss, the medallion marked with the Ruv’na symbol was settling itself around his neck, warm enough he could feel her body heat from it. “I’d wrap this around me and never take it off.” She said sensibly in a tone that was vaguely condescending. She knew the man had no clue she had one of the pendants her father coveted so dearly.

Static embedded deeply in the medallion reared its vicious magical head and like the snake it was, bit off the flow of power from the mark hidden on his body. Relief flowed through him, isolating him from the burning urges he’d been filled with only moments ago. Crescent smirked.

The girl then narrowed her eyes, watching him closely, suspecting and having had her suspicions suddenly fulfilled. “Who marked you?” She demanded abruptly. “I want to see it. Maybe we can carve it out of you with a knife.” She suggested, leaning forward, her curiosity peaked, and drawing a dagger at the same time. The girl had a way with knives, almost as if they were apart of her. She’d never be the bladesmen he was with swords, but her daggers were her best asset. And she looked fully ready to open him up from navel chin to toe in order to find the offensive divine brand.

[Adrien Dair]

His eyes trained on her as she cut him off and sat on his desk. A slight annoyance in his face. He could take what he wanted from her. Throw her down on the bed and forcefully take her then slit her throat. It would be relatively easy. He wondered if she would struggle and fight back. The idea interested him for a moment. Watching the young girl struggle under his grasp, to counter her training that he taught her.

He stepped closer to her. Pressing his waist against her knees, his face a few inches from hers. "What you say is true and you should be warming my bed." his fingers tracing along the length of the exposed skin on her leg. He chuckled at the mention of Eclipse’s new wife. "You know as well as I do that harlot means nothing to me just like she means nothing to you. We are both to busy to worry about a child at the moment. Besides you still have plenty of time." He took the amulet in his hands and looked at it. Turning it over, it shouldn't have come as a surprise to him that the daughter of Eclipse would have an amulet like this. The burning sensation gone from his thigh as he looked down at her.

He moved his arms around her, one behind her back and the other under her legs. He carried her over to his bed and dropped her on it. Moving to occupy the space between her legs as he loomed over her. Dominance and strength in his position as he looked down at her. "The servants are good for a quick petching. But you my dear, I would rather enjoy taking my time with you. Making you wait till I truly bed you down in order to bring about a child. And you know you wouldn't like it if I just gave it to you. No hint of romance or caring at all." His fingers slipped beneath her dress. Tracing down her inner thigh before being placed upon the thin fabric that blocked her from him. His fingers worked to rub her through the cloth.

He smiled and his eyes glowed with a lustful dominance and something a bit more hidden. Though it was true he could take it from her, he wouldn't at least not out of lust. He did love her like a wife. Like she was the only woman for him. But he would never admit it. His job came first and the bond of love between the two would interfere.

He ignored her question, tucking the amulet beneath his shirt as he pushed the length of his body against hers. His fingers trailing from the stop they were and back up her thigh. His free hand knocking the dagger from hers. His lips pressed against hers as his tongue greeted hers. After a chime he pulled back and smiled. "My dear wife. That petching goddess Krysus marked me late upon the night. If we are going to carve anything out of anyone it will be her. We will let her blood drain out and let her followers watch." He leaned forward kissing and biting at her neck as he continued his exploration of her body. His hands moved down her legs. Grasping at her underwear to remove it from her body he tossed it to the floor and then sat up removing his own shirt. The hair on his chest lined the muscles there. Scars visibly in multiple locations. Murdering of some of the Gods followers had branded him with each trophy.

"Since we have time why don't we indulged that feeling of you being ignored" he leaned forward again to meet her lips. Two of his fingers dancing and rubbing along her sex before pushing their way in. His words were more of a statement then a suggestion. She knew ways to get out of this situation, he had taught her. The last thing the man had wanted for her was to be forced with something she didn't want. His fingers twisted and moved as he kissed her neck. Biting and gently tugging at her skin as he pushed her to her limit. He wanted to see how far she could go before she lost control and begged him to give her the real thing.

[Kavala]

Geode was a dog, pure and simple, but a dog that served a higher purpose. Predatory, like all the Ruv’na, Crescent wasn’t completely afraid of him, perhaps not like she should be. But admittedly, a little of her bravo was fear. He was a formidable swordsman and had more kills to his name than many of them.

The girl said nothing as he wrapped his arms around her and deposited her on his bed. Her eyes bore into his, proving him right that she just wanted his attention, and lacking it tended to get cocky with him. He was a big warrior, one of the best, but she knew she was faster. What he dominated in was strength even though her skill was speed.

His words went to work on her and she glared up at him, bucking her hips slightly, and wiggling so he knew she was not fully compliant. “Of course they are good for a quick petching. I hope you don’t think I’m saving myself for you or anything. Some of the stable lads are fine men, bigger than you in fact, and entertain me quite nicely.” She said, flashing her teeth at him in an arrogant grin.

She laughed outright at his words about romance. “As if I need any of that…. give me a good dagger any day, Geode. Or a good daggering….” She said, laughing like a spoiled child, still squirming beneath him. Her attitude would have been ugly, but her classic features softened her face into beauty that in a way she didn’t deserve. Eclipse had raised his daughter with a firm hand, restricting who she met, who she spent time with, and that had made her even more wild than she would have been had he gave her a longer leash.

No, Crescent’s leash was about as tight as it could get. Geode knew that. And so did everyone else who ignored her attitude. Regardless of her mouth, she often got the job done. He’d seen to that with his training. They were all impeccably trained, whether they liked it or not. And if they couldn’t prove their dedication through hard work, they were out. And out meant death.

The girl bucked her hips again as his hand touched her flesh. “Having fun fantasizing about it?” She asked, ignoring his touch though the flush in her cheeks told him she was not wholly unaffected. The girl had trailed him like a shadow since she could barely walk. A child, or all grown up, some things had never changed.

When his weight settled upon her, she groaned, wrapping one leg up and around his. The dagger was forgotten, though there were others in his reach, as the man investigated her further, searching for things that had nothing to do with their work. She jumped when he removed her underwear and stared at him as he slipped off his shirt. Geode had never taken their games this far before. The girl realized it must have been the mark, truly upsetting him, tainting him her father would say.

When he went to kiss her she refused to open up until the gasp that came with his invasion below. Then he had her mouth fully. And by the way she reacted, she hadn’t ever once believed he was going to pursue what he said he was going to pursue. She let him kiss her for a few breaths, loosing herself briefly to the fantasy that things would be okay, then broke it off with a slight twist of her head. Then she whispered to him even as his fingers explored her body and nudged the proof of her innocence. The girl might have had a savage tongue, but she was no light skirt.

“Eclipse will kill you when he finds out you’re marked. You know he thinks anyone who is marked is tainted, despite what they say they are going to do to the one who marked them. If he finds out you petched his little girl with a dirty rod after the fact, he won’t make the death slow.” She whispered viciously, a way to mask her own anger and pain. Knowing how hard Geode’s words hit her was like a little girl finding her favorite pony out in the pasture, one leg dangling broken. Geode, like the pony, would have to be put down. There would be no marriage, no first time in bed with him, none of his children running around. Crescent blinked, not understanding why water was leaking from the corner of her eyes as slowly his words fully sank in.

Marked. Ruined. Tainted.

Crescent’s hands came up and swept into her adoptive brother’s hair. She lifted her head then, still pinned down by him, and kissed him harder. It was an apology, for certain, and something of a goodbye. His body would be cold and hard in the ground by morning – just as soon as she told her father. It was the reason they fought the Gods. It was the whole reason they hated.

[Adrien Dair]

The man was a brute. As strong as he was cruel and even with her snark and displeasure. His fingers remained inside of her moving as he spoke. His eyes looked into hers a deep sadness she would not understand hidden behind his wall. "You will grow tired of them. Just like you have with any other who has tried to court you. Deep inside you know who you want and knowing that it may never happen is burning your very soul. Cause even you my darling have a soul. "Its saddens me. I remember the sweet girl that you were as a child. Your father ruined your soul, and I am not talking about turning you into a Ruv'na member. He did not let you learn on your own. He sheltered you from it and used me to do so." He ignored her words again. He wrapped his freehand around her throat and applied pressure. Not enough to cause any physical harm. Just discomfort and maybe a bit of fear in her.

"I could kill you now. You know that don't you" he said, his fingers leaving her as he moved to remove the amulet from his neck. Before he did he licked her taste off of his fingers. The only taste of her he would ever truly get. Then her removed the amulet and laid it on her stomach.

"Your father slows with age. His skills dull as does his mind." The marks burning resumed like a wildfire overtaking his body. He removed his hand from her throat. "I have killed many. Man, woman and child without hesitation just on your fathers word. I have ruined families, killed priest and even had a child watch me take his mothers life before his eyes." He paused looking down at her Their hips the only thing that remained touching. "Your father asked me if I could kill you if I had to. If you were ever marked." He paused he wanted her to absorb it to take it in. His words she could accept as truth or a lie. Ether way he knew they were true. He removed himself from the bed and walked over to the desk she once sat upon.

"Do you plan on telling him?" he asked as he dug through the drawers. He pulled out a long box and turned back to her. "You have the chance to run and tell him now. The rank and file will be here before I can run. But you know just as well as he does that I will take them. Many of them will die by my hand when they try and take my life." He walked back towards the bed. Bending down to pick up the dagger he had knocked from her hand. He placed it in her hand. Wrapping her fingers around the handle. "Why don't you kill me? Right here and right now. Slit my throat and watch my blood drain out. Please your father and impress the stable boys. You'll be able to have all of them in your bed at once if they know you killed me."

"But before you do. I will finish what I was saying" he cleared his throat and sat on the edge of the bed. His thumbs tapping on the thin long box in his hands. "Your father asked me if I could kill you and I told him no. No matter how much we train, how much I leave marks on your body. I would never be able to kill you. My heart would not allow it. I often wonder if it would be different. If we met in a different place. If you could understand how much I truly care for you without your fathers influence."

"There was another once. Before you were old enough to understand. He was to be your husband or keeper rather. I crushed his skull with his own war hammer. Your father should have killed me then. But he knew how much I cared for you. So he kept me alive and I grew into what I am. I do not regret any of it. I have watched you sleep. Beaten slaves and fools for running their mouth about you. I never saw you as my sister. Nor did I see your father as mine. I have been alone since my parent's died at the hands of the Krysus followers. That same petching goddess that marked me. But it doesn't matter now. You shall hear my words in your head while I die from your fathers blade. You will know what my words said but will probably never know what they mean."

He stood from the bed and turned towards her. He placed the box in front of her and walked over to the table where his duel sided blade laid. He picked it up, unwrapping the cloth that clung to it. The shiny metal of the freshly cleaned bed shimmered in the light. He walked back over to her and kissed her forehead. If she looked she would be able to see her code-name etched into the center of one of the blades and on the other was his. He had this weapon specially made. When they were married he would use it. But it looked like he would not get that chance.

"Open that when I am gone. Maybe it will show you" he said. He stood up and walked out of the room with his blade in hand. If she opened the box like he instructed her would see a silver necklace with a geode fused into the circle in the center. A note laid underneath it.

The note would read "My dear. You are the one I loved and the one I will always love. Even in death I only think of you. If you are reading this then one of two things have happened. I am ether dead or will soon be. I am sorry, sorry that I was never strong enough to break your fathers hold on you. To take you and train you on my own. To let you learn from your mistakes and let you follow your dreams how you wanted to. I wanted to support you, to give you the freedom to choose. The freedom I was not given. Since the day your father found me. He raised me as a tool for his own goals. I accepted them and his training. Wanting revenge for my family. I let him mold me into the weapon I am. But then you came along. A beauty even at a young age. I protected you like an older brother, I took beatings for you that you will not remember.

Though that does not matter now. The stone in this chain is the same that we found on that day so long ago. The day we were both young and innocent. We wanted the grounds and you found the stone. Such a tiny little thing and you turned to me with the most precious smile on your face and you said Look Geode! Its you! Isn't it pretty. I did not understand then how much it would mean to me. But I planned on giving this to you upon our wedding. I am sorry that I have failed." The letter ended. It was written quickly, a few tear stains marked the page that it was written on. If she wanted to catch him, she could run after him.